I have had such a horrible day today. I'm sick, DS is so clingy and whiny, and the house is so disgusting.

STBX just moved out and I am faced with the task of cleaning the house. You have no idea how disgusting this house is. Just to use the kitchen for an example, the edges of the floor have food caked around them, there's food spattered on the walls and caked onto the stove, there's trash behind the trash can, and the refrigerator is half-full of moldy food. When STBX puts food away, he just tosses it in instead of putting it in neatly. I was trying to make banana bread today and had to call him to find out where he put the walnuts. He said "Umm..on the top one...behind the things in front..." by which I guess he meant, "In the cabinet by the fridge, on the top shelf, behind the first pile." I finally found them and tried to pull them out and everything was piled in there (not even stacked, just piled) so precariously that it all went flying to the floor. The soy sauce smashed and went everywhere. DS came running in and I screamed at him to get out. I then had to make my way (barefood of course) out of the kitchen to find my sandals and spend twenty minutes sweeping up glass and wiping up soy sauce. I mopped the kitchen, but the floor's not clean. To get the floor clean, I'm going to have to get on my hands and knees with bleach and a Brillo pad (NOT exaggerating).

I so wish I could hire someone to come and clean the place. It would probably even take a professional a week. It's that nasty. I've done my best, but STBX was home most days and I was at work, then school in the evening. I just couldn't keep up with his messiness. It's so overwhelming now to try and clean this up, but at least he's not here ruining it as I go.

And if only Savannah Smiles would tell us all where she lives...surely SOMEONE can take her up on that fabulous offer!!!

Oddly, I find it easier to clean someone else's place than my own. Weird, eh?

Minkajane, I'm sorry you're in this predicament, I do know just what it feels like. Try to take heart in the idea that once it's done, without STBX messing up the place, things will be so much better. Perhaps start on the fridge, empty it out entirely, scrub it, put the good food back in, then mop and scrub the floor. I find that focusing on one room at a time is really helpful when my house gets out of hand.

good lord, do i know what that is like. if you saw my house, you would feel better. today, my cats rebeled and pooped on the floor right inside our front door where their favorite plants USED to be. ew. i just put the kids to bed and i'm about to do a desperate late night cleaning to get caught up.

get yourself a spackling knife and a scrubbie and pry that crap off your floor. take before and after pictures, to restore your sense of accomplishment should it start to wane again after you're finally done (and it will, it always does).

i'm newly single too, with three kids, and i work 4 hours a day while my kids wreck the house because we still homeschool and i can't afford a mother's helper while i work. it's a good thing i OWN a carpet cleaner, or i would be in BIG trouble. even that thing wont get all the halloween candy out of the beige carpet.